Sony buys 11.5 percent stake in Olympus

Sony, which will now be Olympus's largest share-holder, will also own 51 percent of the medical devices joint venture which will develop equipment such as endoscopes used in key-hole surgery. “As part of our strategic initiatives announced in April 2012, at Sony we are aggressively pursuing the growth of our medical business, with the aim of developing it into a key pillar of our overall business portfolio. The business and capital alliances we have agreed with Olympus today will be integral to these plans,” said Kazuuo Hirai, President and CEO, Sony Corporation in a press release. The deal will strengthen Olympus's financial base, sorely need after former executives at Olympus recently pleaded guilty to covering up losses of 1.7 billion USD.